Game for teaching time concepts

Abstract

An educational game is described for teaching time concepts (e.g., hours in a day, days in a week and month, calendar months, and seasons). The game comprises puzzle pieces which can be assembled in interconnecting relationship in inner and outer bands. The pieces in one band designate seasons and the pieces in the other designate calendar months. The individual pieces are so configured that assembly thereof is only possible if the seasons and the months are both in the correct sequence and the interrelationship between the seasons and the calendar months corresponding to each season is established correctly. The pieces designating months house removable pegs or like markers corresponding in number to the days in the designated months and removable for placement on associated calendar month matrices. An optional feature of the same is a day rod advantageously adapted to be mounted within the inner band of puzzle pieces. The day rod comprises a rod-like member adapted to receive beads or like pieces representing the 24 hours of the day and optionally color coded to distinguish ante-meridian from post-meridian hours.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. An educational game to aid in learning time concepts which game comprises; a plurality of discreetly configured puzzle pieces having means for assembly to form a structure;   a first continuous band of interlocking pieces, each piece of said band bearing indicia designating a different one of the seasons of the year;   a second continuous band of interlocking pieces, each piece of said second band bearing inidica designating a different one of the calendar months;   said pieces forming said first and second bands being adapted to be assembled in interlocking relationship only when positioned in the correct sequence of calendar months and seasons and the correct alignment of calendar months in the second band with corresponding seasons in the first band.   
     
     
       2. An educational game according to claim 1 wherein said individual pieces representing calendar months are provided with housing means for receiving marker means corresponding in number to the number of days in the respective month represented by each of said pieces of the second band. 
     
     
       3. An educational game according to claim 2 and further including a calendar month matrix and wherein said marker means are pegs removable for placement in holes disposed in an associated calendar month matrix. 
     
     
       4. An educational game according to claim 3 wherein said associated calendar matrix is also provided with removable means for designating days of the week. 
     
     
       5. An educational game according to claim 4 wherein said means for designating days of the week are individual tiles each bearing indicia representing one day of the week. 
     
     
       6. An educational game according to claim 4 wherein said removable means is a single block bearing indicia representing each of the days of the week in correct sequence. 
     
     
       7. An educational game according to claim 1 wherein said first and second bands form concentric circles. 
     
     
       8. An educational game according to claim 7 wherein each of said pieces in said first and second bands have generally radially outwardly extending edges of different configurations so that the pieces of the first band and the pieces of the second band only fit together when the pieces are arranged in the proper sequence of seasons and months, respectively. 
     
     
       9. An educational game according to claim 1 wherein said first band fits within said second band. 
     
     
       10. An educational game according to claim 1 wherein said pieces in said first band are each distinguished from the others in said first band by color coding. 
     
     
       11. An educational game according to claim 1 which also comprises an additional member comprising elongated housing adapted to receive a series of twenty four pieces each of which is provided with indicia designating one hour. 
     
     
       12. An educational game according to claim 11 wherein said housing comprises a substantially vertical rod disposed along the length of the housing and said twenty four pieces are beads adapted to be slidably received on said rod. 
     
     
       13. An educational game according to claim 12 wherein said beads are color coded to distinguish those designating ante-meridian hours from those representing post-meridian hours. 
     
     
       14. An educational game according to claim 11 wherein said additional member is adapted to be disposed within said first band and interlocking pieces. 
     
     
       15. An educational game to aid in learning the Gregorian calendar and the interrelationship therewith of the seasons of the year, which game comprises a plurality of discreetly configured puzzle pieces adapted to be assembled to form a structure comprising interconnecting inner and outer concentric circles: said inner circle comprising four pieces each of which is provided with indicia designating a different season of the year;   said outer circle comprising twelve pieces each of which is provided with indicia designating a different month of the year;   said pieces in said inner and outer circles being so configured that they can be assembled in interlocking relationship, within each circle and between the circles, only when positioned in the correct sequence of calendar months in the outer circle and seasons in the inner circle and with the correct interrelationship of calendar months and seasons between the circles.   
     
     
       16. An educational game according to claim 15 wherein each piece in said outer circle has disposed thereon removable marker pegs corresponding in number to the number of days in the month which said piece is designated to represent. 
     
     
       17. An educational game according to claim 16 which also comprises at least one associated calendar month matrix adapted to receive said removable marker pegs. 
     
     
       18. An educational game according to claim 17 wherein said associated calendar month matrix comprises a board on which is marked a grid of squares designating days and weeks in a calendar month each of said squares having disposed therein a hole adapted to receive one of said marker pegs. 
     
     
       19. An educational game according to claim 18 wherein said associated calendar month matrix is also provided with detachable means for designating days of the week. 
     
     
       20. An educational game according to claim 15 which also comprises a substantially vertical rod adapted to receive a total of 24 beads. 
     
     
       21. An educational game according to claim 20 wherein those beads designating ante-meridian hours are distinguished from those designating post-meridian hours by color coding. 
     
     
       22. An educational game according to claim 15 wherein the four pieces forming the inner circle are distinguished from each other by color coding appropriate to the seasons.